One Night Under The Stars
by SilentMuse.x
Summary: ONE-SHOT I have danced with every single eligible woman in the feast except for the one that actually mattered." Arthur/Gwen slow dance in the courtyard. FLUFF.


Title: One Night Under The Stars.  
Author: **SilentMuse.x**  
Rating: G  
Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin.  
Summary: "I have danced with every single eligible woman in the feast except for the one that actually mattered." Written while listening to Everything by Lifehouse. Well, the slow dance anyways. Pure unadulterated FLUFF.  
A/N: Written for the Spring Fling camelot_love.

Gwen watched as he danced with the women of nobility that had come for the festivities Uther had thrown in celebration for the renewal of the signage of the peace treaties.

She watched with a faint smile as the young prince tried to keep a proper distance from the ladies he danced with and his hands never strayed anywhere than their waists. Guinevere knew that Arthur's discontent was bubbling inside of him but he had to maintain decorum.

When he had finally tired himself out, and the song had ended, he excused himself from the young noblewoman – Lady Elina, if Gwen remembered correctly – and walked over to the table where the food was laid out. He took an apple and bit on it with much vigor. When Guinevere saw that everyone was distracted by dancing and music, she walked over to where Arthur was.

"Enjoying yourself, Arthur?" Gwen asked teasingly. Arthur raised an eyebrow at her in response. "Well, you should be. You're the envy of every knight vying to be married to a beautiful noblewoman."

"But why should I search for a wife when I have already found one?" Arthur asked her in return. Gwen's smile faded at that. "Guinevere…"

It was at that moment that Sir Leon decided to intervene. "Sire, your father wishes to speak to you about some important matter. If you would just…"

"Just a moment, Leon," Arthur replied, holding a hand up indicating that the knight should wait. He then turned to Guinevere but it was clear on her expression that he should go.

"No, my lord," Guinevere said with a shake of her head. "It's best not to keep the king waiting and I do not want to keep you." She then gathered her skirts up to give him a formal curtsey. "My lord. Sir Leon." With that, without giving Arthur a second glance, she walked away.

Arthur sighed and tossed the core of his half-eaten apple away before turning to Leon. Sometimes, he has suspicions that the knight has a bad sense of timing whenever Guinevere is involved.

***~***

"You seem troubled," Merlin noted as he watch Guinevere return to where the servants were supposed to stay. "Is something wrong, Gwen?"

Gwen merely let out a long wistful sigh. "Nothing's the matter, Merlin. It's just, I just… it's really difficult to put into words. Do you understand?"

"Uhhh," Merlin said as he paused to think over what his friend actually said. "Could you repeat what you said so I could properly understand what you were trying to say?"

With that, Gwen sighed again. "Never mind, Merlin. It's just that, your master could be so annoyingly persistent at times that it is not humorous anymore."

"Oh," was all Merlin could utter. After a pregnant pause, he continued on, "What exactly has he done this time?"

"He kept on telling me how he wants me to be his wife," Gwen said as she threw her hands up in the air. "I've told him countless of times that I cannot be his queen. It's not that I don't want to be but the circumstances…"

"You just said that you wanted to be his queen, Gwen," Merlin said, interrupting what he suspected to be another one of Guinevere's long rambles. "What is there more to contemplate?"

"The circumstances, Merlin," Gwen said frustratingly. She pinched the edge of her nose and tried to keep her composure. "The circumstances are everything to contemplate about. Do you honestly think King Uther will allow his son to marry a peasant?"

"Well, no," Merlin said as he rubbed the back of his neck. "But once he's dead and Arthur becomes king, there's nothing he could do about it right?"

"Merlin," Gwen said with a slight smile. She then turned to look at Arthur who was deep in conversation with his father and a few of Camelot's knights. "I can't expect Arthur to wait for me."

Merlin could almost see himself grinning at the same words that Arthur uttered not too long ago. "Then you have got to take that chance, Gwen. I can see how much he loves you and I'm sure that he will gladly wait for you."

"What about these noblewomen?" Gwen asked, motioning her hand towards the crowd. "I'm sure Arthur would fine one of them alluring and take a fancy on her."

"But would they be willing to speak their mind about him?" Merlin asked her. Gwen turned to look at him with an undecipherable look on her face. "Besides, Arthur doesn't like gossipy and bubble-headed girls like them. I could still remember Lady Vivian. It took him an enchantment to fall in love with her."

Gwen cringed at the mention of the young woman who once held Arthur's affections. "I'd rather not prefer talking about her, Merlin. If you don't mind."

Merlin's eyes widened at what he just said. "I'm so sorry, Gwen. It was just the whole debacle was rather funny…" Gwen threw him a look. "Well, not in your position of course, but if you look at the bigger picture."

"It's alright, Merlin," Gwen said, holding out a hand to silence her friend. "I just really don't want to talk about it. It's uncomfortable." _And painful_, she added in her thoughts.

"Do you really think Arthur will find another?" Merlin asked, breaking through Gwen's thoughts. She threw him a look to question how he knew that. "We talk."

"About his _feelings_?" Gwen asked, a bit skeptical.

"Okay, so I forced it out of him when he returned from your house and he ended up blustering about everything you told him," Merlin said sheepishly. "It was not a pretty sight."

Gwen wanted to smile at the thought of that but she couldn't bring herself to. "Not really. But I fear it. I fear that he'll realize whatever feelings he had towards me are all just a passing fancy."

"Believe me, Gwen, I've been a witness to you two and it is by no means a passing fancy," Merlin said with a light chuckle. "I honestly think you have no reason to fear it. As long as you're willing to wait for him, I believe you two _can_ be together."

"But the prospect of me being queen is what bothers me the most," Gwen told him. "If we were under circumstances or if I would not be queen once I married him then I have nothing to worry about."

"But you'll be a great queen." Merlin didn't think about it before but once he said it, he knew it was true. "You've always taken care of the common people during times of peril."

"But my position, Merlin." Gwen was surprised at how all of her fears were tumbling off her tongue. "I am no more than a servant girl. Do you honestly believe that the people would accept me as their queen?"

"Sometimes, nobility isn't all there is to being queen," Merlin told her seriously. "And who could understand the people more than someone who is one of them?" Gwen opened her mouth to protest again but Merlin beat her to it. "I know that the prospect scares you, Gwen, but Arthur loves you. Does title really count in matrimony?"

"No," Gwen replied uncertainly. "But…"

"Then there's nothing more to worry about," Merlin told her as surely as he could. "You already have everything that could possibly matter."

Gwen couldn't help but smile at that.

After the feast has long since ended, Gwen was the one who volunteered to stay behind to clean the mess. The other servant girls had brought the food, or what was left of it, back to the castle and the servant boys carried the tables. So all Gwen had to do was to clean up the courtyard, which was not that all dirty, as much as she could.

It also offered her time to gather her thoughts. But apparently, _someone_ had _something_ else in mind.

"Guinevere," the young prince called out in surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing, Sire," Gwen said as she turned around to face the young prince. He had already changed from his cloak and jacket into a simpler tunic and trousers. "It's dangerous for a young prince to wander out of the castle at night."

"A young woman alone in a courtyard is more prone to danger than a skilled prince," Arthur said matter-of-factly. Gwen scowled at him. "What are you doing out here, Guinevere?"

"Cleaning," Gwen said simply, indicating that she was not in the mood to start a conversation.

"Are you still angry at me?" Arthur asked with an amused tone.

Gwen sighed and shook her head. "There is nothing you have done to anger me, my lord."

"Stop that," Arthur suddenly said.

"Stop what?" Gwen asked in confusion.

"Stop calling me 'my lord' or 'Sire'," Arthur said as he threw his hands in the air. Gwen half-expected him to stomp his feet on the ground. "Stop pretending that it was all back to the way it was before."

"Nothing has changed, Arthur," Gwen said softly as she clutched her broom closer to her. All thoughts of cleaning have completely escaped her. "I am still Gwen, the maidservant and you are still Arthur, the prince of Camelot."

"No," Arthur said as he stepped up to her. He took her hands, making her unhand the broom. Gwen ignored the loud sound it made when it hit the ground. "You are Guinevere, the woman I love and I am Arthur, the man who loves you with his whole heart."

"Arthur…" Gwen started but she lost whatever words she was about to say when Arthur suddenly interrupted her.

"Dance with me," he told her suddenly.

Gwen was surprised. She certainly did not expect that. "I don't know how."

"Follow my lead," Arthur whispered softly as he led her towards the middle of the empty courtyard. "And just, get lost in the moment. You'll find your way."

"There's no music," Gwen argued weakly as Arthur guided her hand to his shoulder and as his other hand trailed slowly to her waist. Her breath hitched at that.

"Are you sure?" Arthur asked with a smile. "Listen closer, Guinevere. You'll be surprised at how silence could be the most enchanting music. Close your eyes."

"What?" Gwen stared at Arthur like he had suggested that they jump off the castle together. After all, how could she dance with him if her eyes were closed?

"Just close your eyes and trust me, Guinevere," Arthur told her as he stared straight right at her eyes. Somehow, just looking at his baby blues, made her put her full faith in him.

"Why did you want to dance in the first place?" Gwen asked in a quiet voice as Arthur started to lead the dance. It wasn't exactly a dance, Gwen noted. It wasn't like the dances she saw earlier in the feasts. This was slower, and they were more like swaying back and forth than actually dancing.

"Father wanted me to choose a wife from the noblewomen that I danced with," Arthur replied straightforwardly. Gwen stiffened at that. "I have danced with every single eligible woman in the feast except for the one that actually mattered."

Gwen sighed. She felt so content in his arms that she didn't protest. Instead, she leaned her head on his chest as her arms wrapped around his neck while he settled his hands on her waist. Gwen listened to his heart, with every skip and beat like music in her ears. Arthur was right. Silence was the most beautiful thing to dance to because without it, she wouldn't have the chance to listen to his heartbeat.

Just listening to his heartbeat made her realized that wanted this moment to be hers. She wanted every moment like this to be hers. And that beat she feels underneath his shirt, she wants to listen to it forever.

Gwen took a deep breath as they danced under the moonlight and the stars. She kept her eyes closed as Arthur caressed her cheek and felt herself smile. She didn't know how long they had been dancing but she didn't feel an ache of her legs or a tiredness to come over her. All she felt was contentment in Arthur's arms.

And she knew it was where she belonged.

"I love you, Arthur," Gwen said after a few moments have passed. It was Arthur's turn to be surprised. She opened her eyes and looked at him. "And from now on, I will be yours. Will you be the same?"

Arthur was rendered speechless. So instead of replying, he brought one of her hands over his chest – like he did not too long ago. "This has always been yours, Guinevere."

And with that, he leaned down and kissed her.

It was a promise of forever.

***~***

A/N: I cringe at some of the cheesiness in her but I hope you enjoy it nonetheless.


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